Carry On My Wayward Son
by Pies-and-Angels
Summary: John had always thought that Sam would follow in his footsteps. Be a hunter and avenge Mary and Dean. He never dreamed that Sam would be... wayward. But perhaps this was for the best? Sam could be right. Maybe Dean was still alive. AU. Older Sam and younger Dean. Rated T for my paranoia. No slash.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Supernatural or the cover photo. I only own the story and its title. Credit to whoever drew this awesome fan art. It's lovely...

* * *

 _"Why are you doing this?"_

 _The young man furrowed his brow slightly before glancing back at his father. "Because I know he's out there somewhere. I can't just leave him on his own. He's my brother."_

 _"He's dead, Sam!" his father yelled. "Him and your mother. The demon killed your mother… and the fire killed your brother. He isn't out there, Sam. So get back here and do what you're supposed to do."_

 _Samuel Winchester clenched his jaw and turned to face his father, eyes filled with determination. "I'm not your perfect, little soldier, Dad. I never was. Dean is out there. I just know it."_

 _His father just stood there silently, stewing in his anger. The two men just stared at each other, neither speaking a word until the older finally spoke up, "You step out that door… you're never coming back."_

 _The threat hung in the air. Surely, Sam wouldn't be foolish enough to leave his only family behind. It was the family business now. Avenge Mary and keep the world safe. But Sam merely hardened his expression as he readjusted the strap of his duffle. His mind had already been made. In fact, he had already made his decision a long time ago. A quick turn of his heel, and he was gone, leaving the older Winchester all alone. The sound of the door slamming echoed throughout the small hotel room. The fact that his son had left him did not completely register in his mind until the last echo faded away._

 _The older Winchester fell to his knees, unaware of the tears slipping down his cheeks. He had just lost the last family he had… Regret had come too late as he rushed out. "Sammy!"_

 _But his eldest son would never return… he had now lost both his sons. How could he have ever known or imagined that Sam was right? That his youngest son had escaped a fiery death? How could he… how could he ever have hope for such a miracle?_

 _Oh, ye of little faith._

 _Sam had a heart full of hope, and that heart would be rewarded in a way that John could never have dreamed of._

* * *

 _(Sam's POV)  
_

He heaved a disappointed sigh as he stepped out of the small gas station. It seemed like he could check this town off the list. It seemed like all he was chasing after useless clues. If only he had a solid lead to follow, not the vague visions he had been having. He was so close yet so far.

It had been like this for months. He'd find a clue that seemed to lead in the right direction only to discover yet another dead end. Sometimes he wondered if his father had been right… maybe this really was just a wild goose chase. But it couldn't be, he would remind himself. Those visions just weren't normal. He had practically _seen_ his brother grow up in them. He didn't understand why he could see those things. But one thing that was certain, Dean was alive and out there somewhere. Sam couldn't sit idle, chasing after a relentless revenge. He wanted no part with the dead. The living were more important, but Dad wouldn't understand that. He most definitely would not understand the strange visions he had been having. That was probably the main reason why he left. He just had no way of explaining the visions to anyone (okay, he did have Bobby… but most definitely _not_ his father). And Dean was out there. He couldn't abandon him. Somehow, he would find him. It would just take time… Time that he wasn't going to waste anymore.

He set his lips in a firm line as he slipped into the Impala. Time to hit the road once more. He glanced over at the map in the passenger seat. Dozens of little red x's could be seen across several states. They signaled all the dead ends he had hit. It was a little discouraging to see so many x's, but on the bright side, it did narrow things down however little it felt.

"I'm coming, Dean," Sam promised, revving up the engine.

The Impala was purring softly as he turned onto the main road. It would be another long drive, but who knew? Perhaps this would be the last trip. It would be great if it was. Only time could tell, and he knew time didn't pause for anyone.

He tightened his grip around the steering wheel. He had gotten this far… perhaps his maps and plans hadn't exactly gone the way he wanted, but he was getting somewhere. He would never give up until he found his brother.

Next stop Idaho.

Sam wasn't extremely fond of having to go state by state, but Bobby had deemed it the best way. Chances were he would miss a town if he just jumped around from state to state. No, if he wanted to find his brother, he needed to take it town by town and state by state. He had combed the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Wyoming over the last couple of months, and Idaho was the next state to search. There weren't too many towns in these mid-western states which made the searching easier yet harder at the same time. Every minute at the wrong town was another minute gone by without Dean.

It could be quite frustrating… but he did have a few clues. They still felt rather useless, but it was better than nothing. It gave him something to go on and did help him feel like he was at least on track somehow. Apparently, a young man who fit the description from Sam's visions had been seen passing through several of the small towns on Sam's list. The people Sam had asked couldn't confirm it, but there was a flicker of hope. Dean was close, yet so far. The visions certainly weren't helping in giving a definite pinpoint. They only gave blurry clues like Dean living in what looked like a small town. Oh also, it seemed like Dean moved often and as of late frequented a diner. Some more good but not extremely useful clues. If only the visions could give him something better to go off of: a name of a school, a street sign, anything really. Alas, things never worked that way. He had no control over the visions. They came and go as they pleased, and some at the most inopportune times. He was very lucky that his father never caught on to those said times. Who knows what could have happened? But there was no use thinking about the "could have's," it was done and over. He had more important things to worry about. The present was what pushed him forward. The past would stay in the past. It was time to carry onward.

* * *

 _(Dean's POV)_

He always dreaded heading back home. But there was no way to avoid it. Sooner or later he _had_ to return. It wasn't like he had anywhere else to go. Not to mention he had a duty to fulfill no matter what happened to him. It was enough to keep him from running away from his problems. Dean did not run like a coward from his problems. He faced them head on. Sometimes it hurt, but at least he wasn't tucking his tail between his legs and hiding in some God-forsaken hole.

He sighed. _Home sweet home, huh?_

Silently, he entered the small apartment he called home. He had barely when something (or rather someone) latched on to him. If he didn't know better, the poor soul would have been on the floor begging for mercy.

Instead, Dean pinched the bridge of his nose. "Adam… don't scare me like that."

A young boy looked up at the teen sheepishly. "Sorry, Dee. I just missed you. You've been gone forever!" the boy pouted.

Dean fluffed the boy's hair. "Sorry, kiddo. Told you I had later shift today."

Adam wrinkled his nose, still clinging tightly to the teen's pant leg causing the older boy to frown some.

"Adam… what's that on your face?" The teen knelt down for a closer inspection as Adam began fidgeting.

"Nothing…"

Dean's frown deepened. "Don't lie to me. What happened?"

The younger boy avoided Dean's eyes. "Nothing… really."

"Something happened… What happened?" Dean didn't like it one bit, but he couldn't exactly show it. No use showing his worry.

"Nothing, Dee, honest."

Dean gently grasped the boy's chin, forcing him to meet Dean's green eyes. "Adam."

The boy met his gaze for a moment before wriggling away. "It wasn't anything… Dad was just wondering where you were."

Dean was frowning was more. "He got angry, didn't he?"

Adam was fidgeting again. "He wasn't… wasn't that angry," he admitted a bit sulkily.

"He still got angry," Dean pointed out, getting back to his feet.

Adam just sighed, moving away Dean. "It's nothing… He doesn't do it like he does to you," he mumbled.

Dean sighed. There was no point in arguing with his little brother. He was too tired for this.

"Come on, kiddo… let's just get to bed before Dad finds us."

The younger boy just nodded, making his way to the bedroom he shared with his older brother. It wasn't much, but it was their special place. A place that their parents rarely ventured into.

Dean flopped onto his bed with a content sigh. One of the few comforts he could enjoy these days. School was awful as usual. No need to mention parents. And work? Eh… it was okay. It was definitely better than school or being with his parents.

He glanced over at Adam who was settling into bed. In a few minutes, the boy would be asleep.

10\. 9. 8. 7. 6. 5.

And bam. Adam was sure lucky he could fall asleep so easily. But then again, he had been up rather late waiting for Dean. No matter, now that the kid was asleep, Dean could work on a few things before getting some rest himself. He waited a few minutes more, just to make sure his little brother was truly asleep. It felt like forever, but sure enough, he could hear the soft breathing that only a sleeping person could make.

He rolled over and peeked under his bed. Yep, there it was, nicely hidden behind some old boxes. He carefully reached in and tugged out a rather worn, leather-bound notebook. Moonlight peeking through the bedroom window gave him just enough light to see as he flipped to an empty page marked by a rather stubby pencil.

 _Tonight's hunt went pretty well. Was able to track the ghost and get rid of it for good. Just hope Dad and Mom don't notice how low we are on salt and gas. It's getting harder to hide this from them. I just don't think they'd believe me if I told them that monsters and ghosts and all that were real. But enough of that, I think I'm on the track of something big. There's rumors going on at school about some missing kids or something like that. Teachers don't seem too concerned and neither do the police. But then again, we've only just been here for almost a month. I think there's something up that people just don't want to talk about. I thought ghosts at first, but the ghost I got tonight didn't have any connections to the school case. I'm gonna try to talk to some girls after school and before work. Hopefully I'll get something good from them. Maybe it's a new type of monster… might have to hit the library. It stinks that the library here is so small. It's gonna make it hard to research. But libraries are better than nothing. I don't have a lot to go off of except the notes already in here… I don't even know why I'm writing in it like the previous owner. Maybe this has a connection to me? I don't know. I just write because I don't want other people to be ignorant of what's really going on out in the world. Ghosts, demons. They are all real and someone has gotta hunt them down and kill them._

Dean rubbed his tired eyes. He really needed to catch a breather from hunting, but he couldn't truly rest until he was sure those monsters in this town were dead and gone. He yawned as he stuffed his journal back into its hiding place. For now, he just had to make do with what sleep he could get no matter how little it was. The only worry was how long could he keep this up? Sooner or later, someone could catch on to him. He needed to be on his guard, but he was getting so tiring.

 _I wish I wasn't the only hunter here…_

Being alone was rough. Perhaps Adam could help him? No, Dean thought firmly. He couldn't get his little brother involved in this mess. He was far too young and inexperienced with the real world. Also… he didn't want to damage the kid's innocence. This was a job for him alone. But still, it would be nice to have someone to hunt with. Perhaps he would try looking into that tomorrow as well. No matter. Tomorrow looked like it would be a rather busy day.

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 **Author's Note:** Hello guys and gals! I hope you guys enjoy this new story of mine. It's been on my mind for awhile. I adore "Baby on Board" and "Hunting Dog" but I just had to get this one out of my system. So I hope you enjoy! I'm really excited to add more to the SN fandom. You might be seeing more stories from me besides this one. XD


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